Bergen County product Brian Cushing went down in NFL infamy yesterday, becoming the first player ever to have his Associated Press Defensive Rookie of the Year honor put in position to be yanked away.

The AP announced it will hold an unprecedented re-vote for the award after the NFL revealed last week that Cushing tested positive for a banned performance-enhancing substance in September 2009 — less than a month into his rookie season with the Texans.

Cushing, who insists the substance was “non-steroidal” but still refuses to reveal exactly what it was, has been suspended for the first four games of the upcoming season by the NFL, and the AP piled on with yesterday’s surprise decision.

“Among our senior managers, there was total agreement that this was the right thing to do,” AP sports editor Terry Taylor told The Post yesterday. “There’s just a much more heightened awareness of [performance-enhancing drugs] these days, and this [re-vote] is a response to that.”

The wire service expects to announce tomorrow the results of a re-vote in both the Defensive Rookie of the Year category and the outside linebacker slot on its celebrated All-Pro team.

The AP did not officially strip Cushing of his rookie award because he will remain eligible in both re-votes.

Cushing finished a distant third in the All-Pro balloting, and that outcome isn’t expected to change. But Cushing was the runaway winner for Defensive Rookie of the Year, ahead of Bills safety Jairus Byrd and Packers linebacker Clay Matthews, winning 39 of the 50 votes.

The balloting was done by a nationwide panel of 50 sports writers and broadcasters who cover the league.

Cushing, who has endured PED whispers since his time at Bergen Catholic High School, was Houston’s first-round draft pick from Southern Cal. He finished with 133 tackles, five sacks, four interceptions and two forced fumbles as the Texans posted their first winning season ever.

The AP’s decision to hold a re-vote differs sharply from 2002, when Julius Peppers was allowed to keep his Defensive Rookie of the Year award despite serving a four-game ban that same season for using a banned dietary supplement.

However, Peppers’ suspension was known at the time of the 2002 vote.

Cushing’s ban wasn’t revealed until last week, months after the end of the 2009 season and completion of the voting.

He will not be eligible for next season’s Pro Bowl — he made the AFC team last January, but did not play, citing several injuries — or any NFL-sponsored awards.

Texans owner Robert McNair said he knew during the 2009 season that Cushing had “an issue” with the NFL, but had no details from the league of what it concerned.

“The club is left completely out of the loop on that,” McNair said. “We’re not even notified, it’s the league and the player and the players’ union. All we know is what’s been announced at this point in time.”